Obedience Breeds Understanding

How many times have we asked ourselves: ” If I just understood what God is saying to me then I would do what he is asking me?” “If I just understood why I am where I’m at now, maybe I could trust God a little more.” Like a kid who won’t do what Momma is telling him to do because he wants to know why, we stay stuck in place because we don’t understand. Well John 7:17 lets us know that as we begin to obey God, THEN He helps us to understand.

17 If people choose to do what God wants, they will know that my teaching comes from God and not from me.

Jesus was teaching the people and they were amazed at the things he was saying. The people, though, had a hard time understanding how God could be asking these things of them. Jesus’ teaching didn’t make “common” sense. Jesus says to them: “Do what I am telling you to do, and you will begin to understand God’s teaching.”

For example, some of us are in bad relationships with people who God has told us to leave alone, usually because sin is in the mix. Because we have a fear of the unknown (translation: “Is there anything going to come along better?”), we won’t let go. “It doesn’t make any sense; why I would let go of someone and I don’t have anybody to replace them with?” We want God to explain to us how his will is going to benefit US, instead of trusting that God always knows best even if we don’t have a clue as to what he is doing. God says obey my word and then I will help you to understand. Let’s trust Him and just DO IT!